The GSSA Weekly from Girl Scouts of Southern Alabama

August 18, 2016 
                           See what our Girl Scouts are doing:       

 


Welcome to GSSA Weekly, the council's e-newsletter. 
 
At right, Emily of Junior Troop 9080 celebrates the completion of her Bronze Award project!

Emily educated people in her school and her community about dyslexia, and how it affects not just reading, but other everyday activities. She created flyers with facts about dyslexia and activities to help the public understand the condition. 

She did presentations to educate friends, family and the public and collected books at these presentations to donate to Ronald McDonald House.


Want to see your Girl Scouts featured in GSSA Weekly?  E-mail your photo with event information to communications@girlscoutssa.org.
  
"Explore Something Different" with Fall Product!

Come "explore something different" with the 2016 Fall Product Sales. 

While the troop leaders are in the adult training (at the same location), girls will participate in fall product-themed games and crafts. We will have a taste test table, a magazine table, games, crafts and a fun photo wall where the girls can pose with our new mascot, the Koala! 

This is a great way for the girls to familiarize themselves with the products they will be selling this fall! The cost includes lunch, a rally patch, and activities.

Mobile (ALL) - 9/10                             Montgomery (ALL) - 9/11
Quick Links
Bright Ideas for New and Returning Leaders
 
This week's tip: Is the leadership team changing in your established troop? 

Do you need to change the signers on your troop bank account?  Here is a handy form to get you started:  http://tinyurl.com/GSSAtroopaccount  

Got a new parent who can't wait to be Troop Camper or CPR/First Aider?  Check out all the Camping Skills Certifications and other trainings we have all over the council on our Volunteer Events and Certifications Calendar. 
  
Recruitment Events in August
 
Saturday, August 27: Come try out rock climbing at the indoor rock wall at USA's recreation center and introduce your friends to Girl Scouting! Click here for details and registration information.

 Informational Events for Parents and Girls:    
Thursday, August 18: Ozark City/Dale County
Tuesday, August 23: Ft. Rucker
Thursday, August 25: Montgomery
Thursday, August 25: Geneva County
 Monday, August 29: St. Mary's, Mobile
 Monday, August 29: Mobile County

There's more!  For September events, see the calendar on our Join Girl Scouts page.

Teen Mentors Leadership Course in Mobile or Montgomery

Want to earn your Program Aide or Volunteer-in-Training Pin? This is the core leadership course you've been waiting for! 

Cadettes will complete the leadership course for Program Aide. Seniors and Ambassadors will complete the leadership course for Volunteer-in-Training. 



Support Girl Scouts Every Time You Shop at Kroger!

Help Support Girl Scouts in Your Community! 
Girl Scouts of Southern Alabama is part of the Kroger Community Rewards program that donates funds to local nonprofits. 
 Go to www.kroger.com/communityrewards to link your Kroger Plus Card to GSSA, and a portion of your purchase will be donated to GSSA.  Girl Scouts of Southern Alabama's NPO Number is #55380.  It's that simple!  
Once you're enrolled, you'll earn rewards for GSSA every time you shop and use your Plus Card! If you enrolled last year, please re-enroll.  Thank you! 

Meet Karlyn Edmonds, Our New CEO

It's my first week on the job as your CEO, and it's been a whirlwind of excitement. School is starting across the council, and our staff is getting ready to head into our communities to recruit new Girl Scouts.  This is my favorite time in the Girl Scout year, as it's full of such promise for new things! 
While it may be my first week as CEO, I've actually been on the job at GSSA for nearly 14 years. During this time, I've had the pleasure of getting to know many of you. I plan to spend some time this fall visiting service unit meetings and council programs, and I look forward to meeting those of you I don't know yet and learning more what is going on in your community.
To start, though, I want to tell you a little about myself.  Most importantly, I'm the mother to two precious children.  Our 10-year-old daughter is a Junior Girl Scout, who just earned her Bronze Award, and our two-year-old son is a running, giggling bundle of little boy fun. A native Alabamian, I grew up in Wetumpka, and met my husband of almost 16 years while we were working at The Auburn Plainsman during our college days at Auburn. We love spending time together as a family, particularly if it involves traveling or our family movie nights.
Continue reading on our Virtual Volunteer Blog. 

New Programs & Updates

 Both Service Centers and Shops will be closed on Monday, Sept.5, for Labor Day
 Both Service Center Shops and the online shop will be closed Sept 29-30 for inventory.

 POSTPONED: Thin Mint Sprint 
   
 Date changed to 9/17 for Teen Mentors Leadership Course - Montgomery (C S A)



 Save the Date: Outdoor Badge Day at Alabama Nature Center, Millbrook
 


Upcoming Deadlines //

Event
Location
Date
Deadline
Thin Mint Sprint Run/Patch!  (ALL)  
 Mobile
POST-PONED

FA/CPR/AED Certification (Volunteers)  
 Montgomery
8/25
online study
 Mobile
8/27
8/19
 Mobile
8/27
8/19
Program Credits earned during 2105 Cookie Sale expire on August 31  
  
 
8/31
 webinar
9/1
RSVP
 Mobile
9/10
9/2
 Montgomery
9/11
9/2
FA/CPR/AED Certification (Volunteers)  
 Montgomery
9/8
online study
ChemScouts (B J)
 Mobile
9/17
9/8
 Montgomery
9/17
(date changed)
9/9
 
Other Opportunities
Because we want our girls to have many learning (and fun!) opportunities, we offer this additional calendar for programs that are not presented by our council. Some of these programs are presented by our volunteer Troops and Service Units, others are put on by groups in the communities we serve. Calendar listings do not imply endorsement by the council.  This calendar is available on our Events & Programs page 
Please contact the volunteer listed in the program for more information and program status.